Smaller RPV Trader Joe's proposed

Rancho Palos Verdes may get its peanut-butter-filled pretzels and Two-Buck Chuck after all.

Plans for a scaled-down Trader Joe's - purveyor of eclectic groceries and low-cost wine - were submitted to the city last week.

The new application comes more than two months after shopping center owner Paris Zarrabian withdrew a proposal for a Trader Joe's at his Golden Cove Center, creating an uproar among local fans of the Southern California-based grocery chain.

Zarrabian had submitted plans last year to build a Trader Joe's in place of the center's defunct Golden Lotus restaurant, near the corner of Hawthorne Boulevard and Palos Verdes Drive West.

In May, the Planning Commission asked him to consider reducing the height of decorative parts of the proposed building and address parking issues. Nearby residents had complained about the effect the store would have on their ocean views.

In late July, Zarrabian withdrew his application with a terse letter to the city that referred to the "lengthy process of entitlement" and said "the prospective tenant has shown no interest in waiting." However, the letter said the cost of construction was the "deciding factor."

When the plans were withdrawn, accusations flew within the city about who was responsible for sending Trader Joe's packing. Some residents blamed planning commissioners and City Council members, though neither panel voted on the proposal.

"It caused a lot of consternation in the community because no one understood why this was falling apart," said Mayor Doug Stern, who at an August council meeting sought to explain that the city had done nothing to discourage the plans.

"Bottom line, it's good that it's back on track. It would be a wonderful addition to the community," said Stern, who spoke with Trader Joe's representatives and met with Zarrabian to encourage him to continue with the project.

Zarrabian's architect, Hannibal Petrossi, said the redesigned project had been reduced in height to address the commission's concerns.

He said Zarrabian withdrew the original plans because of doubts about whether the project would be financially worthwhile given the high cost of underground parking, which has been eliminated from the new plan.

Petrossi added that city officials had been very supportive of the project.

"We have a good feeling about it," he said.

Under the new plan, the building would be 26 feet, 3 inches high, the same height approved by the Planning Commission in 1999 for an unrealized expansion of the Golden Lotus, senior planner Eduardo Schonborn said. The proposed structure would be 3 feet 3 inches above the tallest point of the existing building.

At 11,000 square feet, the new project also has a smaller footprint than in the earlier proposal. Parking and traffic studies have been submitted as part of the plans.

The Planning Commission is expected to hold a hearing on the matter before the end of the year, Schonborn said.